When it comes to betting the moneyline, people most usually think of football, baseball and even tennis. When played properly, though, the moneyline can be an excellent way to cash in on NCAA Basketball as well. Before betting the moneyline you really need to know what this bet type is and how to maximize your use of it. In this article we will help you learn about moneylines and what you need to consider to get started.
Moneyline definition:
A moneyline is essentially a bet on which team will win the game. There is no point spread or other handicap for either team, so if you bet on a team and it scores more points than the other team then you will win. There is a catch, though, or the bet would be very simple: the sportsbooks set different prices on each team to balance their risk. When you bet on the favorite you will win a smaller amount and you generally win more than you bet if you take the underdog. The stronger the favorite is the less money you will win and vice versa.
Reading a moneyline:
The simplest way to read a moneyline is to consider a base bet of $100. A moneyline is a number larger than 100, and it can be either positive or negative. If the line has a positive number that means that the team is the underdog. If the line is +180 then you would make a profit of $180 for every $100 you bet. The team will be a bigger underdog the bigger the number is. A +260 team is perceived to be less likely to win than a +140 team.
Most of the time, the favorite is the team with a negative moneyline (in some cases both teams have a negative moneyline, which means that they are both closely matched). A moneyline of -180 means that you have to bet $180 to win $100. A team with a moneyline of -130 will not be favored nearly as strongly as a team with a moneyline of -360.
The biggest advantage of betting the moneyline for NCAA Basketball is that your team does not have to overcome the point spread for you to win a bet. If you believe that one team will win but you are not sure by how much then the moneyline may be attractive. When betting the moneyline you will sacrifice some potential return because the moneyline won’t pay as much for the favorite as the point spread; however, it’s better to make a small profit than it is to lose a bet. This is particularly attractive in NCAA Basketball because the favorites usually face large point spreads and teams can win easily without covering the spread.
